Karen Pavoni v. Chrysler Group

Karen Pavoni, Pamela Moyet, and Fred Scheid (“Plaintiffs”), three of the surviving children of Rose Coats, appeal a summary judgment order in favor of Chrysler Group, LLC (“Chrysler”), the corporate • successor to the manufacturer of the 2008 Chrysler Grand Caravan automobile (“Grand Caravan”) involved in the deaths of Rose and her husband, Roy Coats. Plaintiffs contend that Chrysler is liable for the Coats’ deaths under the theories of strict products liability, negligent design and failure to warn, negligence, and wrongful death. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We reverse the grant of summary judgment and remand to the district court for trial. We also vacate the award of costs in light of our reversal of summary judgment.

I.

According to the district court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of Chrysler, the facts in this case are as follows: On Sunday, February 27, 2011, police-found Rose, age 75, and Roy, age 83, dead in the garage of their Menifee, California home. Rose “was found pinned between the Car’s open driver-side door and the inside of the garage door frame, where she suffocated to death.” Roy “was found lying on the garage floor…